In June 2013, the University of Hawaii at Hilo and its College of Pharmacy, in partnership with Hawaii Health Systems Corporation and Hawaii Pacific Health, community pharmacies in rural counties of Hawaii, the Hawaii Health Information Exchange, and Hawaii Health Information Corporation, was awarded a $14.3M CMS Innovation Grant to improve medication reconciliation and management for the elderly in three rural counties of Hawaii. The program, Pharm2Pharm, will integrate pharmacists into hospital and ambulatory care teams and use health information technology for decision-making support and to enhance communication, particularly between hospital pharmacists and community pharmacists. Expected results include better care transitions, reductions in adverse events, improved medication adherence, and better-informed, more patient-centered decisions about medication therapies, thereby leading to reduced hospitalizations, readmissions, and emergency room visits and better health care and health for the patients served.

Over a three-year period, the University of Hawaii at Hilo’s program will train new workers including a pharmacist project coordinator, a certified project management professional, a physician leader/care transition expert, a measurement and evaluation expert, a contracts administrator, and an administrative assistant.